Weeks passed. At last, Hui opened his eyes. The death qi fully assimilated with his death qi dantian, which rotated quickly, so quickly it began to hollow in the center. Checking his ordinary dantian, Hui smiled. They’re almost identical now. I’m in a much better place than I was when I entered the demonic sect.

He swept his awareness through his storage ring. The black-blooded girl laid there, eyes shut, almost asleep. The red gem grabbed at his consciousness, trying to drag it in, but he moved by too quickly for it to catch anything. A faint impression of rage met his consciousness, and then the red gem fell back.

I really have to figure out something to do with that red gem! Argh, I should’ve taken a closer look at the talismans wrapping it in that illusion… or would they have suppressed the gem? After all, that illusion was trying to eat cultivators…

That’s not the point. I need to visit Fa Chuyou! If she can cultivate the female cultivator’s corpse for me, or help me cultivate her corpse, I’ll be one step closer to the true body replacement art! Her body doesn’t seem to be decaying quickly, but I think it’ll start decaying eventually, so I don’t want to wait too long.

He stood and strode for the door. Sunlight awaited him, dazzlingly brilliant. He raised a hand, peering down into the valley around the ancient serpent’s skeleton.

Down below, the ghoul regiment stood stock still, the same as always. He frowned, then ran down the skeleton. If Fa Chuyou isn’t there, she should be in the Corpse Refinement Valley. I’ll check there first, then head into the valley.

Loud shouting caught his ear as he hopped off the final vertebra. Hui turned toward it, curious.

Three black-robed cultivators stood around a single cultivator in white robes. Her robes were torn and mussed, filthy with dirt. Patchy splotches of blue and green sprawled over her hair. Head ducked, she staggered forward, wrists bound behind her.

A pill cultivator? Hui stopped, squinting. Those robes… they almost look like…

“Keep moving!” one of the black-robed cultivators barked, kicking the cultivator forward.

She stumbled and barely caught herself. Looking around, she shook her hair out of her face. She scowled around her, disgusted with her surroundings.

Hui stared. Is that… Xixing? What is she doing here?

Xixing caught him staring and bared her teeth at him. “What do you want? Come here, I’ll make some nice, safe pills for yo… ou?”

Xixing’s brows furrowed. She tilted her head, squinting at the ghoul skin. Her eyes narrowed, and she gave him a quizzical look. “How do you know… that technique?”

“Elder Sister, I’ve never met you before. Please don’t be so bold as to accuse me of stealing your techniques at our first meeting,” Hui replied, bowing. As he did, he urged Zhubi to peek out from under his sleeve as casually as the snake could manage.

Xixing’s eyes went wide. She glanced at Hui, then away. With some effort, she put an expression of fear on her face. “Ex… excuse me, esteemed fellow cultivator. I made a mistake.”

“This small cultivator won’t hold it against you,” Hui replied, straightening from his bow.

One of the black-robed cultivators stepped aggressively toward Hui. Fourth-stage pressure emanated from him, powerful but oddly unbalanced. At times, it dipped down into low third stage, only to soar up to mid fourth stage the next. “Who do you think you are, calling out to our hostage? Are you looking to die?”

Hui bowed. “Please excuse this small cultivator, Elder Brother. I simply disliked your lowly hostage glaring at me.”

“Look away, then,” the cultivator snapped. He glowered at Hui, then shoved him out of the way and walked on. The other two hurried along after him, shoving past Hui as well. Xixing gave him an apologetic look as she was hustled by.

Hui stared after the dark-robed cultivators, eyes dark. He glanced at the talisman crumpled in Xixing’s hand, then glanced away. That talisman is all I can do for now. I can’t steal you away now, Xixing, but give me a day or two. I’ll figure out where you are and break you out!

I put some of my qi in that talisman, so she can use it even if they fully restrict her cultivation somehow. I ought to know if she uses it as well, and if she does, I’ll run to her side! But right now… those cultivators, especially the one with the weird fluctuations… I’m not sure I could defeat him alone. I’ll see if I can recruit Bai Xue for backup before I go after Xixing.

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But first, I have to get stronger. And the clearest way to get stronger… is to complete my perfect body replacement technique!

He walked away casually, pretending not to care. Internally, his heart was in turmoil. Xixing, what happened? How did you end up captured by demonic cultivators? Is the sect in danger, or did you happen to get captured on your own?

I can’t chase after her now. It’ll look too suspicious. I have to have faith in Xixing!

His heart full of anxiety, he strode off toward the ghoul regiment.

The ghouls stood in the shadow of the skeleton as quietly as ever. Now, the death qi around them felt thinner, while the ghoul regiment’s cultivation had risen. Now, the ghouls fluctuated with a power equivalent to the second stage.

Blank eyes gazing dead ahead, Chang Bolin hung by the edge of the regiment. He stared longingly inside, pressing his hands against an invisible barrier.

“Do you want to be part of the regiment?” Hui asked, drawing up alongside Chang Bolin.

Chang Bolin growled at him, eyes narrowed. As Hui grew closer, he lunged, biting at Hui’s hand.

Hui jumped back, yanking his hand out of reach. Chang Bolin’s teeth closed on air. “Excuse me, Elder Brother, this small ghoul was being rude.”

As soon as Hui backed away, Chang Bolin settled back down. He paced along the outside of the barrier, rubbing his face along it. Hui raised his eyebrows and shook his head at the ghoul. How the mighty have fallen.

Fa Chuyou isn’t here. The only other place to look… is the Corpse Refining Valley!

He turned his head, gazing over the dark valley. A shiver crawled down his spine at the sight of the stark white coffins and the dark fluids within. The memory of the hand reaching for him welled up in his mind. I’m in my body now. I should be safe. Still, he moved cautiously into the valley, cutting a wide berth around the coffins and the small black river in its center alike.

An eerie silence descended around him. He hadn’t noticed it on his first trip as a soul, when the world’s sound and colors were both muted, but now, it rushed up at him, almost too obvious. He ran a hand over the back of his neck and pressed on, legs shaking faintly. Come on, Hui. If I’m going to create a real replacement body… I have to get used to this!

Shadowy figures stood ahead of him, deeper into the valley. Hui lifted his hand and squinted ahead.

Fa Chuyou walked along, her back to him, chatting animatedly with another cultivator. The other cultivator nodded back, turning toward her with a smile to reveal Gu Tian, flute dangling from his belt. Fa Chuyou gestured Gu Tian toward a crude stone cave cut into the steep valley wall, and he nodded and followed her.

Gu Tian? What’s he doing…

Hui’s forehead panged. He staggered, then slumped, body weakening. He hovered above it, looking down on it. What now? Do I have too much death qi again?

He dove toward his body, but before he could return, a flicker of color caught his eye. Hui paused, looking up.

As he did, sharp pain bit into his forehead. A droplet of black blood rolled down between his eyes. The third eye opened.

Ahead of him, a mirror image of Fa Chuyou overlapped with her, following her every move. Hui frowned. Is that… her soul?

He glanced at Gu Tian, then stared. Gu Tian walked along, laughing with Fa Chuyou, a youthful spring in his step, but instead of a mirror image, a shadowy, transparent soul chased a half-second after his moves. Thick, blood-red tethers connected the soul to Gu Tian’s body. But perhaps most shocking of all, Gu Tian’s soul was that of a middle-aged man. Instead of Gu Tian’s fine features and slender figure, the man had a broad chin and a strapping figure. Long hair rushed back from his temples. He carried a sword instead of a flute, and wore simple white robes, simple, familiar white robes.

Hui blinked. No way… that soul… they’re slightly different, but those robes look almost like Starbound Peak robes!

The soul turned, suddenly. Their eyes met. Hui froze, holding his breath. Fierce light burned in the man’s eyes. He opened his mouth.

Gu Tian turned back a half second later. He stared through the air where Hui hovered. Blank eyes searched the empty air. After a beat, he glanced down, then furrowed his brows. “Fa Chuyou, is that… one of your ghouls?”

Hui glanced down. Oh right, my body! He leaped into his body, and the mirror-images faded away.

“Eh? Xie Hao, are you okay?” Fa Chuyou asked, sprinting toward him.

“I’m fine, I’m fine,” Hui said, climbing to his feet.

Before he could climb all the way up, Fa Chuyou hugged him tight, inadvertently pressing his face into her soft, abundant chest. Hui turned his head away, holding his breath until she released him. “You’re so delicate! You should let me refine you again. I’ll make you strong.”

Hui carefully extricated himself from her grasp and nodded at her. “This small cultivator wouldn’t dare be so bold.”

“Not at all, not at all. It’s an honor, an honor!”

Gu Tian cleared his throat. “Fa Chuyou, I’m going ahead.”

“Yes, yes. I’ll be right behind you!” She scanned over Hui. “What happened? Can you recall what went wrong, that you collapsed?”

“Thank you for your concern, Elder Sister, but this small cultivator, er… tripped.”

“If you’re sure,” Fa Chuyou said, her brows furrowed.

“Actually… this small cultivator came here to request an honor from Elder Sister.”

“Oh?” Fa Chuyou tipped her head, curious.

Hui stretched out his hand and summoned the black-blooded cultivator’s body from his storage ring. Carefully, he laid it out on the floor.

Fa Chuyou caught her breath, and her eyes sparkled. “Yes, yes, yes!”

He cleared his throat, slightly embarrassed. “Er… Elder Sister, would you help me… figure out how to turn this body into a gh—”

“Yes!” Fa Chuyou said, clasping his hands. “Let’s get started right away!”